Chapter 169: True to His Legend
Chapter 169: True to His Legend
A pickpocket with his hood pulled low was threatening Ryu Sunho.
For an ordinary person, it was the kind of situation that would make them cower and back away.
But in the video, Ryu Sunho did not look intimidated in the slightest.
Instead, he lightly dodged the punch the man threw, hooked his leg to break the man’s balance, then twisted his arm behind his back and pinned him to the ground.
Crash!
There was not a single wasted movement.
A smooth, clean technique that used the opponent’s own strength against him.
It looked like a long-take action scene from a tightly choreographed film.
“...Oh!?”
Quentin’s eyes filled at once with surprise and delight.
This went far beyond simply having solid fundamentals.
He looked ready enough to go into filming right away without issue.
“He’s already prepared! What a good kid!”
Unable to contain his excitement, Quentin showered the phone screen with kisses.
Los Angeles, California, the heart of Hollywood.
At the headquarters building of The Movie Pictures, which boasted the most imposing presence even here, the employees were in total disarray preparing for an unannounced VIP visitor.
“Who’s coming that everyone’s making such a fuss? Is a senator dropping by or something?”
A new employee, who had only joined the company recently, asked with a puzzled look.
Normally, executives hated it when someone showed up without even scheduling an appointment.
But today, the mood was completely different.
If anything, everyone looked flushed with excitement and tension.
“Hah, a senator? No, someone far more difficult than a senator is coming. Even our company directors can’t make a peep in front of him.”
A little later, the heavy revolving door opened, and a man strode roughly into the building lobby.
Greasy, disheveled long hair, an outdated baggy shirt and suspenders, and even a worn-out suede bag in one hand.
The man looked almost homeless.
It was Quentin Marino.
“Director! You’re here!”
The executive producer ran out to greet him.
The other employees in the office also stopped what they were doing and all turned to stare at him.
“My God... that’s really Quentin?”
“Isn’t this the first time in three years that Director Quentin came to the company on his own?”
“It means the script’s done.”
“Damn... what kind of monster project did he bring this time?”
The whispers spread like a wave.
But Quentin paid no attention to the eyes on him.
Chewing gum with his usual eccentric expression, he asked, “Where’s David?”
“Th-the head of production is in an executive meeting right now...”
“A meeting? Tell him not to be ridiculous. I brought something a million times more important than some boring meeting.”
Quentin smirked and tapped his worn bag.
“If he doesn’t come running out in one minute, tell him I’m taking this script to a rival studio.”
A little later, David, The Movie Pictures’ head of production, came running into the meeting room.
One of his shoelaces was untied, but he clearly had not had time to worry about that.
“Oh my God, Quentin! You really came!”
“You’ve worked hard waiting for me.”
“Haha, not at all. Waiting in anticipation for your script is one of life’s pleasures for me, Director.”
“No. I meant I worked hard waiting for you people.”
Quentin cracked a grin as he joked.
“You look to be in a very good mood today.”
“I am. But once you read my script, your expression’s going to look even better than mine.”
With those confident words, Quentin pulled a thick stack of paper out of his bag and dropped it onto the table with a thud.
Check Mate
David swallowed dryly as he looked at the script.
“Could you give me some time?”
“Of course. Chew on it thoroughly while you read. If you skim through it and flip pages carelessly, I’ll get pissed off. Don’t miss a single word.”
David put on a smooth smile and took out his glasses.
He turned the pages at a moderate pace, but as time passed, his expressions became more and more dynamic.
His brows furrowed, then his eyes widened, and soon he covered his mouth and let out a gasp of admiration.
About an hour later, he closed the last page, removed his glasses, and let out a deep breath.
“...As expected, your reputation is well deserved.”
“Of course. It’s me.”
“The plot itself is incredibly fascinating, but more than anything, the protagonist’s character setup is... so attractive and astonishing. Not just a split personality, but multiple personalities.”
He continued in an excited voice.
“The concept of a boy who is a chess grandmaster, with each chess piece on the board existing as a separate personality inside him. The idea that six personalities collide and coexist within one body... wow, I’m getting chills just reading the script.”
But the end of David’s sentence wavered slightly.
“However... I’m a little worried about the casting. How many actors are there who could perfectly pull off this script? It requires action, drama, and madness... all of it.”
David rapidly ran through several Hollywood top stars in his head and began naming them aloud.
“Brad? Hmm... or maybe someone with a stronger individuality, like Evan Harris?”
“No.”
Quentin rejected that immediately and said firmly, “I already have someone in mind for the lead in this project.”
“Ah, is that so? As expected, you already had a plan. Who is it?”
“Ryu. The lead in this film has to be Ryu Sunho, no matter what.”
“...Pardon? By Ryu Sunho, you mean that Korean actor?”
Around the same time, in Korea, Mueon:ga was slowly preparing to leave the theaters.
But this was not an exit. It was the completion of a legend.
Eight weeks since release.
Even with new films pouring out, it had firmly remained near the top of the reservation rankings for a long time.
It was not simply that it sold a lot of tickets.
The critics’ response was close to worship.
[Critic Park Dongjun: ★★★★★ / A Tower of Babel built through silence, with Ryu Sunho standing at the summit.]
[Critic Seong Pyeonghwa: ★★★★★ / Baek Junbong’s direction is like a blade, and Ryu Sunho’s acting is the blood clinging to that blade.]
Whether it was film magazines, blogs, or YouTube, content analyzing Mueon:ga and praising Ryu Sunho’s acting poured out every single day.
And in a rural village in Chungcheong Province, even here, slightly removed from the center of the frenzy, there was one passionate fan.
“Mmm... this one really knows how to write, doesn’t it.”
It was old man Ryu Seungdeok.
He carefully tapped at his smartphone screen with his rough fingers.
His thumb, callused from farm work, firmly pressed the like button.
“As expected... he’s my son, but he really is amazing. How does he make people cry and gasp with just his expressions?”
With a pleased smile, old man Ryu Seungdeok scrolled down, then suddenly his brow furrowed.
Honestly, isn’t he overrated? People are praising him way too much just because he won an award at Cannes... feels like he just got lucky lol
“Huh, seriously. Don’t these punks have anything better to do after eating? Why are they tearing down someone else’s fine son?”
Old man Ryu Seungdeok clicked his tongue and pressed the three-dot button in the upper-right corner of the comment.
[Do you want to delete this?]
[Enter password.]
Without hesitation, he tapped the number pad.
1, 2, 3, 4.
[This comment has been deleted.]
“Right, figures. Instead of leaving malicious comments, go wash your feet and sleep, you punk.”
This was know-how old man Ryu Seungdeok had picked up while stanning his son.
Comments written by non-members.
To delete them, you had to enter the password set by the original writer, but quite often, simple codes like 1234 or 0000 worked.
“I may not have much education, but I was born with a talent for understanding people’s psychology.”
After neatly cleaning out the comments, he read the article about his son once more.
[Ryu Sunho Hits 2,500% Return Jackpot... Crowned an Investment Genius]
“As expected. He really is my son. DNA’s science, I tell you. Farming is about timing, and investing is about timing too, and he’s got an uncanny feel for it.”
He had been very surprised when he first saw the article, but he had deliberately refrained from contacting his son about it.
If he contacted him just because he saw the article, it might make it seem as if he wanted something from his son.
That would be too much of a burden.
Hadn’t he already received far more than enough from his son beyond what he had done raising him?
A sports car, a brand-new tractor, the house renovated...
In truth, he did not need anything material anymore.
Just searching his son’s name and seeing people praise him in unison already made him feel full.
As a parent, it was the greatest luxury he could enjoy.
Now there’s nothing more I could ask for... no, I shouldn’t say that. They say words become seeds, so I have to be careful.
Old man Ryu Seungdeok shook his head and added one simple wish.
There’s only one thing left for me to wish for. That Sunho lives happily. That’s enough.
After living long enough, he had learned that success was not necessarily happiness.
He had seen far too many people who were successful and still miserable.
On the other hand, even if he himself had never achieved any grand social success, hadn’t he lived a sufficiently happy life together with the family he loved?
If someone gave me piles of cash and happiness and told me I could only choose one, then of course I’d choose happiness.
At that moment, the front door opened, and a familiar voice was heard.
“Father, I’m home.”
His son Sunho had arrived.
His son entered smiling brightly, his hands full of gifts.
“Oh, our son’s here!”
Ryu Sunho held out a large box to his father.
“This is a gift for you, Father.”
“What’s this? Why’d you bring an apple box? We already have plenty of apples at home. Such a waste...”
But when old man Ryu Seungdeok grumbled while opening the box, his eyes went wide.
The box was stuffed full of bundles of cash.
Packed in tight.
“W-What is all this...?”
“I brought you some spending money. Buy good food with Mother, and go travel overseas with your friends too. Don’t hold back.”
The corners of old man Ryu Seungdeok’s mouth twitched upward on their own.
For a moment, the thoughts he had just been having wavered a little.
Tsk... maybe a certain amount of happiness really can be bought with money...
For the first time in a long while, I went down to my family home and spent an enjoyable time with them.
I ate my fill of the home-cooked food my mother prepared, shared a drink of makgeolli with my father, and gave my younger sister a gift to celebrate her entering middle school.
This is nice.
When I threw myself onto the bed, the soft blanket wrapped around me.
There was no place as comfortable as a home where your family was with you.
As I lay there drowsily staring at the ceiling, a familiar notification sound rang out.
Ding!
The status window opened before my eyes.
【Objective achieved: Shall we captivate even more viewers with the next film?!】
【Selected Goal: 12 million viewers】
【Achieved Result: 15.1 million viewers】
【You have exceeded the goal!】
15 million.
A record that ranked in the top three all-time Korean box office.
It was a miracle created by its shocking Cannes award result, word of mouth, and the craze for repeat viewings.
【Hidden Reward Granted!】
【S-rank Upgrade Ticket x1】
At last.
I had finally obtained the S-rank upgrade ticket I had wanted so badly.
Just as I was about to check the reward with excitement, the status window suddenly began vibrating noisily.
Bang! Bang-bang!
A flashy fireworks effect exploded again, and then—
【Reputation Value score has been updated!】
【Ryu Sunho’s current Reputation Value is ‘4 billion won.’】
My Reputation Value had jumped straight to 4 billion won.
It seemed that with the film’s unprecedented box-office success overlapping with the news of my investment windfall, my value had skyrocketed vertically.
Then another new notification appeared.
Ding!
【Perk for achieving 4 billion won in Reputation Value!】
【The new function [Value Shop] has been unlocked.】
【※ You can use your accumulated Reputation Value to purchase special items.】
...Value Shop?